10/28/2015

Lita Ford show was a 'Runaway' hit in Portland

Lita was dressed in a skintight leather jumpsuit, blonde hair waving and armed with her trademark B.C. Rich cherry red guitar. Her band features monster drummer Bobby Rock, guitarist Patrick Kennison and bassist Marty O’Brien who lays down titanic grooves.

It’s been a very longtime since Lita Ford made a stop in Portland. Ford played the Bossanova Ballroom on October 25th ---a Sunday night to a nearly packed house. Ford peaked in 1988 when she issued her ‘Lita’ album which featured her duet with Ozzy Osbourne “Close My Eyes Forever.” Lita went on to issue more albums but none matched the fine moments of the ‘Lita’ album. Ford took a break from music she returned in 2009 with an ‘industrial’ influenced effort titled ‘Wicked Wonderland.’ That effort was essentially rejected by the fans---she returned in 2012 with ‘Living Like A Runaway.” The aforementioned being her finest effort since ‘Lita’ and it received the praise of press and fans alike.

Ford opened her 80 minute set with “Larger Than Life” a moderately known track from the past and followed it up with “Relentless” from the new album. Risky but it went over incredibly well the enthusiastic and partially inebriated crowd. Lita was dressed in a skintight leather jumpsuit, blonde hair waving and armed with her trademark B.C. Rich cherry red guitar. Her band features monster drummer Bobby Rock, guitarist Patrick Kennison and bassist Marty O’Brien who lays down titanic grooves. To say that this band is tight would be a gross understatement.

The set was heavy on the ‘Lita’ album though early classics like; “Gotta Let Go” and “Out For Blood” made the cut—with great appreciation shown by the audience. Lita has been performing Elton John’s “Bitch Is Back” as of late and it was incorporated alongside two additional covers; The Runaways’ “Cherry Bomb” and The Professionals’ “Black Leather” which raised the bar late in show. Lita closed with “Close My Eyes Forever” with guitarist Patrick Kennison singing the Ozzy parts and then her signature song “Kiss Me Deadly.” Truth is it was a reach for Lita to hit most of the notes on “Kiss Me Deadly” but no one seemed to pay much mind to that. In short Lita put on a fun and entertaining show as did her band and that is all that really mattered. Ford will release her memoir ‘Living Like A Runaway’ in the spring of 2016---that should be a great read.